Strap assembly for securing a patient{40 s arm to an arm board

ABSTRACT

A strap assembly having three strap sections extending from a near common center. One strap section has a slip ring attached to its free end, allowing the free end of a second strap section to be passed through the slip ring. The free end of either or both of the second and third strap sections has a connection attachment so that the free ends of both strap sections can be temporarily connected to each other.

n w 1 l u l mte States ten 1151 3,6,73 ay 1 Web. 8, 197 2 [54] STRAPASSEMBLY FOR SECURING A 3,358,141 12/1967 Hoffmann et a1. ..250/50PATIENT'S ARM To AN ARM BOARD 3,196,870 7/1965 Sprecher et a1......128/133 3,535,718 10/1970 Murcott ..128/133 X [72] Inventor: Tommy D.Ray, 2218 Edlson Drive, San

Anton), 78212 OTHER REFERENCES [22] Filed; Mar. 13, 1970 Coogh Belt",The Lancet, Oct. 3, 1964, page 736 Primary Examiner-William E. Km [211App]' l9l53 Assistant ExaminerJ. Yasko Attorney-Robert L. Eschenburg[52] US. CL ..128/87, 24/204, 128/133,

128/D1G. 15 [57] I511 Int.Cl. ..A6115/04 mm mm 01 Search ..128/87, 133,134, D10. 15; A map assembly havng 8 m? a 24/20], 204 81,16,205 nearcommon center. One snap section hm a sh nng attachedtoitsfreeendallowingthefreeendofasecondstmp Elmssectiontobepassedthrough the slip ring.'1hefieeend of l 56] Refer Citedeither or both of the second and third strap sections has a con- UNITEDSTATES A N necfion attachment so that the free ends of both strapsections can be temporarily connected to each other. 3,509,875 5/1970R1chter ..128/78 3,279,008 971966 Wallich ..24/204 x mmmw ENTOR 0. Ray

ATTORNEY sTRAP ASSEMBLY FOR SECURING A PATIENT 's ARM TO AN A M BOARDBACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention Article ofmanufacture for holding a patients arm tightly to a board so thatintravenous injections can be given or so the board can be used as asplint.

2. Description of the Prior Art:

In the past, a patient who was in need of an intravenous injection or inneed of the arm to be held in a splint had the arm to be secured, placedon an arm board which was held in place by two strips of adhesive tape,one of which was wrapped around the board and arm at each end of theboard. Many people are allergic to the adhesive used on adhesive tapeand their skin which comes in contact with the adhesive becomes quiteirritated. A certain amount of pain is felt when the adhesive tape isremoved and although some movement of the arm is desirable to alleviatecramping, the tape prevents any movement, thereby necessitating frequentremoval and replacement of the tape; The tape, of course, has to bediscarded after each use.

Applicants invention, by not using any type of adhesive and by beingmade of a nontoxic material, does not irritate the skin of the user, canbe reused indefinitely by washing after each use and allows a smallamount of movement, thereby preventing cramping of the arm.

As was enumerated in the description of the prior art, there are manyproblems associated with the use of adhesive tape to secure a personsarm to an intravenous arm board when there is a medical need to injectfluids by the use of a needle into a persons veins, or to minimizemovement of an arm for any other reason.

Therefore, an object of this invention is to provide a strap assemblyfor securing an arm to a board without the use of any adhesives oradhesive tape.

Another object of this invention is to provide a strap assembly forsecuring an arm to a board that is reusable an indefinite number oftimes.

A further object of this invention is to provide a strap assembly forsecuring an arm to a board that is nontoxic and will not irritate theskin of the arm that is secured to the board.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a strap assemblyfor securing an arm to a board that will allow a certain amount ofmovement to prevent cramping of the arm.

Briefly, the invention is a strap assembly, called, an IV cufflet, whichutilizes three strap sections made of solid plastic or of cotton orplastic webbing extending froma common or near common center. One of thestrap sections has a metal or plastic slip ring attached to its freeend. The slip ring has an opening large enough to allow the free end ofone of the other strap sections to be passed through the slip ring. Whenthe need arises to secure a persons arm to an arm board, two strapassemblies are normally used. The board is slipped through the openingof each strap assembly formed between the strap section that passesthrough the slip ring and the strap section having the slip ring, withone strap assembly being secured to each end of the arm board. The armto be secured is laid on the arm board and the two strap sections ofeach strap assembly that remain free are placed around the am so as toencircle the arm and are joined to each other by any of a number ofvarious types of connectors. The tightening of the two strap sectionsthat encircle the arm to secure the arm to the board also tightlysecures the strap assembly to the board itself, thereby preventing anyslippage between the board, strap assembly and arm.

The novel features believed characteristic of this invention are setforth in the appended claims. The invention itself, howi ever, as wellas other objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood byreference to the following detailed description of illustrativeembodiments, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is another isometric view of the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention being shown secured to an arm board.

FIG. 3 is a pictorial view of a persons arm being held securely to anarm board by two strap assemblies according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of still another embodiment of the presentinvention.

Referring now to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of a strapassembly constructed in accordance with the present invention isindicated generally by the reference numeral 10 in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3. Thestrap assembly 10, as shown in FIG. 1, comprises three strap sections 1,2 and 3 extending from a common or near common center 4. The strapsection 10 can be fabricated from many different types of synthetic orlimitation, a typical strap assembly has cotton webbing about Ione-twentieth inch in thickness and about 1% in width, with strapsection 1 being about 5 inches in length as measured from the commoncenter 4. Strap section 2 is about 9 inches in length and strap section3 is about 4 inches in length. The length of the strap section 3, ofcourse, depends on the width and thickness of the arm board 8, as shownin FIG. 2, but typically a board for an adult patient is about 3% inchesin width and about three-fourths of an inch in thickness.

If the strap assembly 10 is to be made from plastic, it is possible,using conventional injection molding technology, to fabricate strapsections 1, 2 and 3 as one piece. However, as stated previously, theeasiest material to work in fabricating the strap assembly 10 is commonwoven cotton webbing. Since it is not necessary (although it can easilybe done) in fabricating the strap assembly 10 from cotton webbing tostart with 3 individual and separate strap sections and then to jointhem together, only two pieces of webbing normally are utilized. Eitherstrap sections 1 and 2 or sections 1 and 3 are one piece of cottonwebbing. Sections 2 and 3 could be one piece also but it is notdesirable, for the webbing would have to be bent at the common center 4.The simplest arrangement is to sew one end of strap section 3 to thesingle piece comprising strap sections 1 and 2 at or near the center 4or, alternatively, strap sections 1 and 3 are made from one piece withone end of strap section 2 being sewn to the single piece of material atcenter 4. The least desirable arrangement, as stated above, is to havestrap sections 2 and 3 made of one piece with strap section 1 sewed tothe single piece of material at the common 'center 4.

A ring 5, of either metal or plastic, is attached to the free end ofstrap section 3 by any convenient method, to be used as a slip ring. Inthe case where cotton webbing is used for the strap assembly, the freeend of strap section 3 is looped through the slip ring 5 and sewn backon itself to secure the slip ring 5. In the instance where a solidplastic strap assembly is used, the slip ring can be attached to thefree end of strap section 3 during the molding of the strap assembly 10.

The preferred connection method for temporary connecting the free endsof strap sections 1 and 2 together to secure an arm to a board is theuse of a two part material, known as hook and pile, comprising a stripof fuzzy material composed of a myriad of miniscuel thread loops (pile)and a strip of material having rows of hooklike appentages (hook) madeby a number of manufacturers, one of which is Velcro Manufacturing Co.,which adhere tightly to each other when pressed together. An adherentstrip 6 of the fuzzy material is sewed to the bottom side of strapsection 1 by conventional sewing methods. Another adherent strip 7 ofhooklike material is sewed to the top side of strap section 2, also bycommonly known sewing methods. When strip 7 is pressed firmly againststrip 6, strips 6 and 7 adhere very tightly to each other but are easilyreleased by peeling strap section 2 back and away from strap section 1.Both strips 6 and 7 are of sufficient length so that the strap assembly10 will accommodate a large range of arm sizes, the total length ofeither strip not being required to be in contact with the other tofirmly secure the free ends of strap sections 1 and 2 together. The hookand pile material is preferred for attaching the strap sections 1 and 2over the double buckles 12, as shown in FIG. 4, because the tighteningpressure, when strap section 1 is connected to strap section 2, isexerted over a wider area of the patients arm. In addition, the strapsections 1 and 2 can be secured and released much more quickly using thehook and pile material. It is obvious that the strips 6 and 7 can beplaced on the opposite sides of the strap sections on which each issewed or their positions can be reversed without reducing theeffectiveness of the strap assembly 10. The only location reference thatmust be maintained between strips 6 and 7 is that when both strapsections 1 and 2 wrapped around a patients arm, strips 6 and 7 must comein contact with each other. The opening in slip ring 5, of course, islarge enough to accommodate the thickness of the material, cottonwebbing or plastic, used to fabricate strap section 2 plus the materialthickness of strip 7.

To connect the strip assembly 10 to an arm board 8, as shown in FIG. 2,the free end of strap section 2 is passed through the slip ring to forman enclosure between strap sections 2 and 3. One end of the arm board 8is then slipped through the opening formed by strap sections 2 and 3. Atypical arm board 8 is a fiber board approximately 18 inches long, 3%inches wide, and one-fifth of an inch thick with a foam rubber pad ofthe same width and length placed adjacent one side of the fiber boardand the fiber board and pad sealed within a plastic cover. The strapsection 3 goes under the arm board 8, the underside of the board 8 beingthe side opposite the side on which the patients arm will lie, and is ofsufficient length to allow the slip ring 5 to extend to the side of thearm board 8. By pulling on the strap sections 1 and 2, the enclosureformed by a portion of strap section 2 and strap section 3 is reduced insize, thereby tightening down on the arm board 8 therebetween.

Although only one strap assembly is shown secured to the arm board 8 inFIG. 2, a second strap assembly 10 is secured to the opposite end of thearm board 8, as shown in FIG. 3. The patients arm 9 is laid on the topsurface of the arm board 8, with the patient's lower arm near its wristplaced over the open lower arm strap assembly 10 and the upper arm nearthe patients biceps placed over the open upper arm strap assembly 10.One strap assembly 10 is shown completely secured, holding and securingthe patient's upper arm to the arm board 8. The second strap assembly 10is shown secured to the arm board 8 with strap section I placed on thepatients arm 9 near the wrist with strip 6 on what is now the topsurface of strap section 1. Strap section 2 is shown just prior to beingplaced over strap section I and prior to having strip 7 brought incontact with and pressed down on strip 6, which will hold the patient'sarm securely to the arm board 8. Although the patient's arm is securedto the arm board 8, the patient can move his wrist slightly to alleviatecramping but without hurting the patients arm whether an intravenousinjection is being given or the arm is being held in a temporary slint.After each use, both strap assemblies 10 can be easily removed from thearm board 8, cleaned hygenically and reused indefinitely.

Another embodiment of the invention is shown in FIG. 4. Strap assembly11 is similar to the strap assembly 10, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3,except that instead of using the hook and pile material to connect strapsections 1 and 2, a double buckle 12 is attached to strap section 1. Touse strap assembly 11, strap section 2 is passed through the slip ring 5to form an enclosure therebetween into which an arm board 8 (not shown)is slipped or passed. The patients arm (not shown) is placed on the armboard and strap section 2 is connected to strap section 1 by connectingthe free end of strap section 2 to the conventional double buckle 12.

Still another embodiment of the invention is shown as a twopiece strapassembly 12, as shown in FIG. 5. Both strap sections 13 and 14 have sliprings 15 and 16, respectively, attached to one end. The opposite end ofeach strap section is passed through the slip ring of the other strapsection to form an enclosure therebetween for an armboard (not shown).Adherent strips 6 and 7 are attached to the strap sections 13 and 14,respectively, as in strap assembly 10. Strap assembly 12 is lessdesirable than the one-piece strap assemblies 10 and II, due to the useof the two slip rings 15 and 16 instead of one. It is obvious, ofcourse, that strap sections 13 and 14 could be one piece with theportion 17 of strap section 14 being a separate piece, both slip rings15 and 16 then being attached to portion 17.

Another embodiment of the invention (not shown) is very similar to strapsection 10, as shown in FIG. 1, except that strap section 2 has a secondslip ring attached to its free end and strap section 1 has adherentstrips 6 and 7 placed side by side thereon rather than strip 6 being onstrap section I and strip 7 being on strap section 2 of strap assembly10 (of course the second slip ring could be on strap section 1 andstrips 6 and 7 could be on strap section 2). An arm board is securedbetween strap sections 2 and 3, as previously explained. To secure thepatients arm, the free end of strap section 1 is passed through thesecond slip ring and brought back on itself so that strip 6 comes incontact with strip 7. By pressing strips 6 and 7 together the patient'sarm is secured to the arm board as before. Again there is no particularadvantage to the strap assemblyjust described over the preferredembodiment hut in fact it would be slightly more expensive due to theuse of two rings instead of one.

Although the preferred embodiment of the invention along with alternateembodiments has been described in rather specific detail, it is to beunderstood that various changes, substitutions and alternations can bemade therein without dcparting from the spirit and the scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A combination of a strap assembly and an arm board wherein theimprovement comprises a. first, second and third strap sectionsextending from a near common center;

a slip ring attached to the free end of said third strap section; and

0. connection means attached to at least one strap section other thansaid third strap section, whereby when said second strap section isslipped through said slip ring to form an enclosure thereby, and saidboard is placed in said enclosure, and said arm is encircled by saidfirst and second strap sections, and said first and second strapsections are joined by said connection means, said arm is secured tosaid board.

2. The strap assembly defined in claim I wherein said connection meanscomprises a first adherent strip attached to said first strap sectionand a second adherent strip attached to said second strap section,whereby said first and second strips adhere to each other when pressedtogether.

3. The strap assembly, as defined in claim 2 wherein said first andsecond strap sections are made from one piece and said third strapsection is sewed thereto.

4. The strap assembly as defined in claim 3, wherein said first, secondand third sections are made from cotton webbing.

5. The strap assembly as defined in claim 2, wherein said first andthird sections are made from one piece and said second strap is sewedthereto.

6. The strap assembly as defined in claim 5 wherein said first, secondand third strap sections are made from cotton webbing.

7. A strap assembly for securing an arm to an arm board, comprising:

a. first, second and third strap sections extending from a near commoncenter;

b. a slip ring attached to the free end of said third strap section; and

c. a double buckle attached to at least one strap section other thansaid third strap section, whereby when said second strap section isslipped through said slip ring to form an enclosure thereby, and saidboard is placed in said enclosure, and said arm is encircled by saidfirst and 5 second strap sections, and said first and second strapsections are joined by said double buckle, said arm is secured to saidboard.

1. A combInation of a strap assembly and an arm board wherein theimprovement comprises a. first, second and third strap sectionsextending from a near common center; b. a slip ring attached to the freeend of said third strap section; and c. connection means attached to atleast one strap section other than said third strap section, wherebywhen said second strap section is slipped through said slip ring to forman enclosure thereby, and said board is placed in said enclosure, andsaid arm is encircled by said first and second strap sections, and saidfirst and second strap sections are joined by said connection means,said arm is secured to said board.
 2. The strap assembly defined inclaim 1 wherein said connection means comprises a first adherent stripattached to said first strap section and a second adherent stripattached to said second strap section, whereby said first and secondstrips adhere to each other when pressed together.
 3. The strapassembly, as defined in claim 2 wherein said first and second strapsections are made from one piece and said third strap section is sewedthereto.
 4. The strap assembly as defined in claim 3, wherein saidfirst, second and third sections are made from cotton webbing.
 5. Thestrap assembly as defined in claim 2, wherein said first and thirdsections are made from one piece and said second strap is sewed thereto.6. The strap assembly as defined in claim 5 wherein said first, secondand third strap sections are made from cotton webbing.
 7. A strapassembly for securing an arm to an arm board, comprising: a. first,second and third strap sections extending from a near common center; b.a slip ring attached to the free end of said third strap section; and c.a double buckle attached to at least one strap section other than saidthird strap section, whereby when said second strap section is slippedthrough said slip ring to form an enclosure thereby, and said board isplaced in said enclosure, and said arm is encircled by said first andsecond strap sections, and said first and second strap sections arejoined by said double buckle, said arm is secured to said board.